Design Concept Development
Combining the Idea of megachurch and street organ from the plot, I arrived at the idea of including a majestic highly decorative rose window and church organ in the stage design. This was inspired by Leeds town hall and Notre Dame
Chorus Costume Drawings
All chorus costumes have exagerated versions of some typical televangelist audience accessories; big hair, big pocketquares, bright and bulky jewelery and big square glasses.
Vendor Costume Drawings
Brundibar written by Hans Krasa, and libretto by Adolf Hoffmeister, follows the story of Joe and Annette, two poor children who need to buy milk for their ill mother. They soon find out that they cannot buy milk without money. This is followed by their discovery that they can make money just like Organ Grinder Brundibar. No one listens to them until they sing a very heartfelt song which causes Brundibar to lose his hold on his audience.
Joe and Annette Costume Drawings
Joe and Annette have inverted versions of eachothers costumes with some minor differences to reflect each character. Both costumes are ill fitting to emphasise their financial situation.
Icecream Seller, Milkman and Baker; the vendor characters were effectively working for brundibar without knowing his corrupt agenda. In this vein, the costumes were designed based on the extravagant megachurch entertainers.
Spatial Set Design Development
The 3D form of the set evolved as debicted below. The 3D layout was based loosely on the architecture of Lakewood Megachurch in Texas.
Final Model
This final model shows all vendor stalls rendered to their indivdual designs, with associated comedic slogan banner above. This model also shows the carpet tiled floor and the office chair pews emulating the comertialisation of the church evident in Megachurch culture. These images also show how Brundibar’s organ console emerges from the main organ back wall.
Read-Through
The set and costume design concept began from the drawing similarities of the plot of brundibar to the storyline of The Trueman Show followed by finding likeness in the construct of Megachurches and televangelism.
Brundibar.
(Hypothetical) Opera Set and Costume Design
Joe and Annette Costume Design
The design for Joe and Annette’s costumes was developed with inspiration from dungarees that bring a younger innocent look to the characters. This was combined with a typical slight dischevelled look that comes with poor cliches.
Chorus Costume Design
The design of the chorus characters was based on exagerated televangelist audiences, as they would be the Organ Grinder Brundibars audience.
Brundibar and Police Costume Drawings
Sparrow, Cat and Dog Costume Drawings
As opposed to the chorus, the three animal characters are genuinely kind and caring and want to help because it's the right thing to do.
I have based these characters on three typically trustworthy figures in society with some elements of the respective animals referred to in the script.
Brundibars costume is a superlative of everything about the chorus. He has the biggest hair, the biggest ring, the biggest glasses and a superiority-provoking jacket/cape with an enormous pocket square. Exageration of the Police costume allows for parts of the costume to be rejected when, at the end of Act 2, the police take brundibar away, and the facade is broken for the police character.
White Card Model
A white card model was made to test the spatial arangement of the set in different scene scenarios, showing the three vendor stalls and the organ that clads the near-entirety of the set.
